Bay Street Bridge (Point Ellice Bridge)

One way to improve the stats for how many people use the Johnson Street Bridge every day, is to have closures on the Bay Street Bridge, while watermain work is being done. Since only 5% of the CRD population lives in Esquimalt it will be interesting to see who complains the most over these closures.

Hold on just a sec, here. I thought the JSB was so decrepit and run down that it had to be replaced NOW NOW NOW.

The reason I bring that up in this thread is that now, not only will the JSB remain open during the construction of the new bridge (God forbid that ever happens), but it is now also expected to handle the increased traffic volume going over the bridge during the time of the Pt. Ellice Street Bridge closure?! Madness, won't someone please think of the children!!?!?

Where's John Luton, clearly he must be against this, given his safety argument as the reason for scuttling the existing JSB.

The Capital Regional District is advising motorists to expect delays and bridge closures as water main maintenance under the Bay Street Bridge begins this month and is expected to continue through February 2010. [...]

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...it is now also expected to handle the increased traffic volume going over the bridge during the time of the Pt. Ellice Street Bridge closure?! Madness, won't someone please think of the children!!?!?

Makes sense to me. The bridge is rock solid when we're depending on it but incredibly unsafe when we feel like replacing it.

A water main replacement project will close Point Ellice Bridge to traffic from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. starting Jan. 10 and ending Feb. 4.

The nearly 80-year-old pipe has reached the end of its lifespan.[..]

What about the economic impact on late-night great-nights? Restaurants, theatre, movie houses, nightclubs and escort agencies are bound to be impacted by the lack of access to Victoria. It's unsustainable! You would think they wouldn't want to put that kind of stress on Old Blue, she is a veritable wreck, they say. Inherently dangerous to take the load of two bridges for a month of nights.

Point Ellice Bridge closures are of some impact to me, certainly more than the Johnson Street bridge. I try to avoid either and go over the Tillicum bridge because both of the City of Victoria ones are not well suited for traffic - Tillicum is the only four lane bridge over the Gorge (why, in what planet, did anyone think the Bay Street Bridge should only be one lane each way????)

If a new Bay St. bridge was to be built , it could be financed by having it as a habitable bridge with condos or office space built above the roadway or like the one proposed in London at the ends of the bridge.

If a new Bay St. bridge was to be built , it could be financed by having it as a habitable bridge with condos or office space built above the roadway or like the one proposed in London at the ends of the bridge.

Wow, I'd like to go see that.

There's so much potential for some really stunning developments of the upper harbour area. Especially Rock Bay, once the $40m cleanup is done. I keep envisioning a park at that point, connected to Bay St with a new Rockbay Bridge, as it once was. (Use one of the spans of the JSB!) But I hadn't thought about what kind of residential could go in.

You could achieve the same results by buying up an old BC Ferry and anchoring it in place. Run vehicles across the car deck and convert the upper decks to condos. The restaurant could continue to serve that great ferry food.

Now that the Johnson Street Bridge project is well underway, I suppose it is safe for the city to bring up spending money on the Point Ellice Bridge.

I remember the seismic comparisons being made a few years ago where the Bay Street bridge was not up to the seismic standards being demanded for a replacement for the Johnson Street Bridge, even though it carried a major water main into the city that would be used for firefighting after a major earthquake.

A poll by CFAX yesterday shows that Victorians would rather spend money on another bridge, than to seismically upgrade their number one fire hall.

City staff have identified the fire hall, the Bay Street Bridge (also known as the Point Ellice Bridge) and the Crystal Pool as the three pieces of city infrastructure in need of millions of dollars of unbudgeted repairs.

The most recent condition assessment of the bridge, built in 1956 on piers that date back to 1902, determined it to be in poor to fair condition with repair estimates in the $11-million range — more if the deck is widened for bike lanes and for sidewalks on either side. However, the assessment says that, with proper maintenance, the bridge has another 50 years of life.